an EventHelix.com blog

TCP slow start sequence diagrams

TCP is an end to end protocol which operates over the heterogeneous Internet. TCP has no advance knowledge of the network characteristics, thus it has to adjust its behavior according to the current state of the network. TCP has built in support for congestion control. Congestion control ensures that TCP does not pump data at a rate higher than what the network can handle.

In this sequence diagram we will analyze “Slow start”, an important part of the congestion control mechanisms built right into TCP. As the name suggests, “Slow Start” starts slowly, increasing its window size as it gains confidence about the networks throughput.